signs that a child may be a bully
Wondering what the recipe is for creating a bully? Well, I have some good news.
We are beginning to have some answers thanks to a new study by Douglas Gentile and Brad Bushman published in the July issue of the Psychology of Popular Media Culture.
This study identified six risk factors that, when co-existing in the same individual, are good predictors of that individual's risk of becoming a bully and of, at some point, engaging in aggressive behavior.
When all six factors are present, risk of aggression increases significantly. One or two risk factors are not enough to create a bully, but when you get to three and past four risk factors the risk increases significantly. By six risk factors, as stated above, it is fairly likely that the individual will engage in aggressive behavior.
The study by Gentile and Bushman looked at 430 children ages 7-11 in grades 3-5 from 5 Minnesota schools. For this study, children and their teachers were surveyed twice in a year- usually six months apart. Physical aggression was measured using self-reports, peer nominations, and teacher reports of actual violence.
Related: Signs that Your Child is Being Bullied
Here are the combination of risk factors that predicted future aggression and bullying behavior:
1. A tendency toward hostility
2. low parental involvement
3. gender with boys being more likely to be physically aggressive
4. a history of physical victimization
5. a history of prior physical fights
*and
6. media violence exposure.
It's important to keep that media violence exposure alone is not enough to predict aggressive acts. It is only one piece of the puzzle. So, before you restrict your kids from all forms of media keep this study in mind.
This study may help us identify kids who are at risk for aggression and allow us to help them before they become entrenched in this sort of behavior. This is invaluable information for parents and educators. I would like to see this study repeated with kids of all ages as we wrestle with this troubling issue.
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- How to Help Your Teen Avoid Dating Violence
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Barbara Greenberg and Jennifer Powell-Lunder are authors of the hit book, "Teenage as a Second Language: A Parent's Guide to Becoming Bilingual." They've set up an interactive website for parents and teens to listen, learn and discuss hot topics and daily dilemmas. You can find it at www.talkingteenage.com.
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